GDPSW 3

⟡Chapter 3⟡

“Gasp.”

Anneliese involuntarily drew in a breath.

Cold sweat broke out across her skin.

Like a mouse standing before a lion, her body instinctively froze.

Barely managing to regain her composure, she steadied herself.

Get a grip. This isn’t the time to be like this.

What kind of look was the Grand Duke giving her right now?

A gaze “in love”—she had seen that kind of look to the point of exhaustion.

After all, she had lived her life as a beauty capable of inspiring love at first sight.

If the Grand Duke’s gaze was the same as the Crown Prince’s, she planned to run away without looking back.

So, if one were to ask what kind of eyes the Grand Duke of Aperhis had—

They were… peculiar.

Can a person’s eyes even look like that?

How could she describe it? If she had to compare—

They were like the eyes of a doll.

The man standing before her was clearly alive.

But there’s something off. It feels like I’m looking at something completely different that just happens to be shaped like a human.

His gaze was entirely different from other men’s. She couldn’t predict his emotions at all.

No—did he even have emotions?

While she was lost in thought, his gaze shifted.

Anneliese, still tense, followed it with her eyes.

Why is he staring at my wrist?

Bang.

A loud noise echoed—the reception room door had closed.

Now only the two of them remained in the silent corridor.

“…Um, Your Grace?”

Sorry for saying this upon first meeting, but did my wrist wrong you in some past life?

Could you either let go or stop staring? Just one of the two would be nice.

The moment Anneliese tried to pull strength into the wrist he was holding—

The Grand Duke finally spoke.

“Your hand.”

His thick brows tilted slightly, as if in mild curiosity.

“Why is your wrist so thin? It feels like I’m holding a branch.”

“Pardon…?”

There wasn’t a trace of emotion in his low voice.

Not even a hint of affection or interest.

He sounded genuinely puzzled—nothing more.

Anneliese stared at him in confusion.

Between his leather gloves and sleeve, a glimpse of bare skin showed—smooth, bronze-toned, with veins subtly raised.

He was clearly a young man around her age.

And yet, this man of marriageable age, holding the wrist of a stranger—

The only thing he had to say was:

Why is your wrist so thin?

Well… because my parents gave birth to me this way?

More importantly, is it normal to ask something like this instead of greeting someone you just met? Are northern customs really this different?

The instinctive fear she had felt earlier had long since vanished.

Unbothered by her silence, the Grand Duke continued.

“Your skin is excessively pale as well.”

Now her skin was the next target.

After a brief pause, he added with the same expressionless face:

“You should get sunlight regularly. Photosynthesis is beneficial to humans too.”

Now he was even offering solutions she hadn’t asked for.

Anneliese responded awkwardly.

“Ah… yes. Thank you.”

The Grand Duke looked at her hand as if it were something unpleasant, then released it as though he had seen enough.

What is wrong with him?

She had no idea how to deal with him.

It was bewildering—and, in a strange way, refreshing.

At least one thing is clear. Whatever his intentions are, he doesn’t seem to have any romantic interest in me.

Especially those dry, lifeless eyes. A man interested in someone would never look like that.

Men—at least human men—don’t act like that.

Anneliese had spent her entire life being courted by men. She was certain of this.

And what was that ridiculous conversation just now?

It was clearly not how someone behaved toward a person they liked.

This man… might not fall in love with me.

Her heart swelled with hope.

I’ll never meet eyes that lifeless again. I have to catch him now.

Anneliese hurried after the Grand Duke, who was already walking away.

“Your Grace! I’m Anneliese of the Solaritzen County. If it’s not too rude, I’d like to ask you a question.”

He stopped.

As if granting permission, the Grand Duke turned his head toward her.

Though why he was looking at her hand instead of her face while she spoke—she had no idea what kind of etiquette that was.

Still, it worked out in her favor.

“Do you, by any chance, have someone in mind for a Grand Duchess? Or are you engaged to be married?”

“No.”

It was an impolite question for a first meeting, and she had even prepared to be ignored—but fortunately, he answered.

Perhaps, being as rude himself, he was tolerant of others’ rudeness.

At the clear response, Anneliese’s face brightened.

“Then—”

“You’re being long-winded. Didn’t you say you would ask only one question?”

At this rate, she should have asked if she could ask five thousand nine hundred and fifty questions instead.

The Grand Duke clearly had no intention of giving her more time.

Anneliese quickly thought of a way to ensure she could meet him again.

“The holy relic of Aldeon shown at the imperial palace is fake. The real relic is in my possession.”

That got his attention.

The Grand Duke, who had been staring at her hand the entire time she spoke, finally lifted his gaze.

The air seemed to grow heavier.

“How did you know I was looking for it?”

There was no need to be that guarded. Anneliese took a step back and thought quickly.

The northern autonomous territory was a closed region, one that imperial citizens could not freely enter.

There was only one reason the Grand Duke, who had isolated himself there, had come to the capital.

Because the Imperial Consort had offered the relic of Aldeon as a bargaining chip.

In the end, it turned out to be fake, and the deal fell through.

The Consort likely never knew—

That the treasure, said to have disappeared centuries ago, was in the Solaritzen family’s possession.

“I heard it from His Highness the Crown Prince.”

She couldn’t exactly say she knew from memories before regression, so she used the Crown Prince as an excuse.

At the mention of him, the Grand Duke seemed to accept the explanation.

“If you want the relic of Aldeon, you’ll have to deal with me, not His Majesty. I’ll be waiting at the Emperor’s birthday banquet.”

“A banquet.”

The Grand Duke tilted his head slightly, examining her.

Waiting for his response, Anneliese met his gaze.

His eyes passed over her indifferently, like he was looking at a fallen leaf on the road.

Dead fish eyes.

No—beyond that—

Like a completely dried flatfish.

Eyes that wouldn’t look out of place at a seaside dried seafood market.

They’re so dry I almost want to spray them with water.

As she was thinking that, his indifferent eyes disappeared beneath a mask.

A black mask covered his entire face.

“Very well.”

Anneliese’s eyes widened.

Did he just say “very well”?

“Thank you, Your Grace. Then I’ll see you soon. Please take care.”

He gave no reply to her farewell.

With long strides, the Grand Duke quickly disappeared down the corridor.

When he was no longer in sight—

I did it…

Anneliese slowly leaned against the wall, her tension finally releasing.

“Have you returned?”

Her lord had come back from the imperial palace.

Isaiah halted the horses and opened the carriage door.

Pushing aside the heavy curtain, his master stepped inside.

The moment he sat down, he removed the mask that had been obstructing his view.

In the dark, unlit space, only his golden eyes gleamed ominously.

“Yes.”

As always, his tone was indifferent—but today, something felt different.

His reply was delayed by a few seconds, like his mind was elsewhere.

Isaiah noticed the subtle change.

What could have happened at the palace to make him like this?

Curiosity stirred at this unfamiliar reaction. Isaiah opened his mouth to ask what had happened.

Never imagining—

That he would end up listening, for the next five hours, to a detailed account of a certain woman’s first impression.